Mayor Isaac Jomo Osman
* A profound sense of regret over his actions in that moment that fell short of the standards expected of him
* We owe it to the people of Blantyre to lead with integrity, accountability, and restraint, and that is the standard I intend to uphold moving forward
By Duncan Mlanjira
Blantyre City Mayor, Isaac Jomo Osman, who is caught up in a storm of violation of human rights and gender sensitivity when in an unrestrained-vigilante-rage-he-publicly-slapped-a-woman-suspected-to-be-an-accomplice-to-crime, has profoundly apologised to the victim — describing the incident as “unfortunate…and regrets that the situation escalated to that point”.
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“While the full footage provides broader context, I want to be clear that my actions in that moment fell short of the standards expected of me, both as a public official and as a leader in our city and I take responsibility for my actions.
“As Mayor, my foremost duty is to uphold the safety, dignity and well-being of all residents of Blantyre. Our efforts to maintain order and protect the community must always be carried out within the bounds of respect and the rule of law.
“I, therefore, welcome any appropriate review of this incident and will cooperate fully and extends my heartfelt apology to ‘mama’.
“We owe it to the people of Blantyre to lead with integrity, accountability, and restraint, and that is the standard I intend to uphold moving forward,” he said.
Meanwhile, in their joint condemnation of the actions the Ministry of Local Government & Rural Development has collaborated with the Ministry of Gender, Children, Disability & Social Welfare and other relevant institutions, announced that they will undertake sensitisation and capacity building for all Mayors, Council chairpersons, chief executive officers and other council leaders “on ethical leadership, lawful exercise of authority, gender sensitivity, professional conduct, and respect for human rights”.
In a joint statement — issued by Secretary for Local Government, Rev. Moses Owen Chimphepo and Principal Secretary-Administration, Oliver Kumbambe — says the two Ministries “remain committed to promoting accountable, lawful, inclusive, and people-centres leadership across all local authorities”.
The joint statement indicates that “council leaders have the responsibility to support safety, security and order within their communities — but such authority must always be exercised within the confines of the law, with full respect for due process, human dignity, and the fundamental rights of every citizen”.
“Matters involving suspected criminal activity must be handled through established law enforcement and judicial institutions,” says the two Ministries, while underlining their strong condemnation of the “alleged acts of violence captured in the video footage, including the reported assault of the woman.
They maintain that “such conduct is inconsistent with the values of public leadership, undermines efforts to promote gender equity and eliminate gender-based violence, and compromises the standards of professionalism and ethical conduct expected of public office bearers”.
The two Ministries approach to the incident is a complete opposite to that by other human rights activists, including Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC), Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) and United-Democratic-Front-president-Atupele-Muluzi, who were advocating that he be arrested outright.
According to ZBSNews, the HRDC maintained that “no elected leader has the right to act as investigator, prosecutor, judge, and executioner in the streets”, while Atupele Muluzi said: “No suspicion justifies violence or taking the law into one’s own hands. Allegations must be handled through proper legal processes, with respect for human dignity and the rule of law. We must stand firm against all forms of abuse and uphold accountability for everyone.”
But many members of the public, including some of repute with full respect of the law, went to-the-defence-of-the-Mayor, saying this was just a moment he lost control of his emotions but some respect should be acknowledged of his impressive leadership and management of the City of Blantyre.
A HardTalker described the civil rights advocates as people who “are not representing Malawian interests but their stomachs, to attract donor funding for them to buy Prados”.
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